Hard Girls (33 page)

Unlike Annie, Kate could see through Simone’s friendly demeanour. Annie, God love her, missed the hardness of her eyes and her natural distrust for the police. Kate knew that O’Leary would have primed her about what she could, and could not say. Kate understood that, and would work within those parameters. Simone would only tell them what was relevant, she would never tell them anything she thought could be used against her or, more importantly, the people she worked for.

Kate deliberately took over the conversation, doing it with a flourish that left no one in any doubt about who was in charge. ‘Look, Simone, I’ve spoken to Terry, and I know he has already talked to you about this meeting. Well, I just want you to be clear that I have no interest in your daily grind, OK? I simply want to ask you a few questions about your clientele. I swear to you that we are not questioning you about your daily life. Your job is private and personal and I guaranteed Terry that. But you have to be honest with us. We’re not making a statement of this, we are just interested in your take on the people who use your establishment.’

Simone didn’t answer for long moments, and both Kate and Annie knew that she was wondering how to answer their queries without putting herself or her workforce in danger.

Annie Carr had enough sense to keep quiet at this point, she realised that it was in her interest to let Kate orchestrate the interview. She saw Simone weighing up her options, and she knew that if she sat back and kept out of it all, they would be rewarded.

Kate smiled. ‘Just tell me if there were any punters you were chary of, anyone that you felt wasn’t right. I know that you girls have a built-in shit detector, it’s what keeps you from being hurt, and that’s what I’m interested in now. We know about James Delacroix but over the last twelve months, has there been anyone else who gave you food for thought? Who you felt was dangerous? Was there anyone you had problems with, no matter how small or insignificant they might have been? We need to know.’

Simone started to relax, she felt more comfortable now. This wasn’t a real interview by the Filth, all they wanted was an opinion and she was more than will to the point of emaciationev Kate Burrowslt ding to give them that much at least. She wanted this fucker caught as much as they did. Probably more, if the truth were known. She had seen the fear that had spread through the working girls, saw the unease and distrust that had become even more a part of their daily lives. She knew that their fear was interfering with not just their work, but with their real lives, with the lives they lived with their families. It had taken its toll on them, they were all terrified that they might become the next victim.

Simone knew Kate Burrows by reputation and she knew the girls were pleased she was involved in the investigation because that meant they were being looked after by one of their own. She had tamed Patrick Kelly, and that in itself was kudos enough. She was still wary though, still felt the need for reticence. It was what had kept her safe all these years, it came naturally to her.

Kate said quietly, ‘Is there anyone who came to the house that made you feel uneasy? Was there anyone who you felt was capable of hurting someone, and not in a kinky way. Really harming them? Someone you felt was wrong somehow? You’d be surprised how often a woman’s intuition is proved correct.’

Simone sighed heavily. She was racking her brains for anyone she could think of who fitted their bill. But there wasn’t anyone. She shook her head sadly. ‘I’m sorry, but there is no one who springs to mind. I really want to tell you what you want to hear, but I can’t. None of the girls have said anything along those lines about the men who currently frequent our establishment. And, believe me, they would be very vocal about something like that. They know the value of honesty when it’s about safety. They aren’t fools, they wouldn’t compromise their safety for money. And in reality, we are at the
safest
end of the market. The men who come to us are actually completely honest about what floats their boat.’

Kate listened intently to Simone’s words and she saw she was being truthful. She really was trying to be helpful. ‘I understand that, but if that’s the case, then what the fuck do you think happened to Candy Cane? Why her? Who killed her?’

Simone wasn’t rattled, and Kate knew that wasn’t because she didn’t care, it was because she didn’t want to show her feelings.

Simone shook her head in denial. ‘I don’t know. I don’t even know who half her customers were. She entertained out of office hours, if you get my drift. She had her private customers and I don’t know who they were. Why would I? She looked after the house, she lived there, rent-free. All I do know is that she should have been alone the night she died. No one was in the book. Whoever she let in, she let in without a second’s thought. It was either a private regular or a newbie. Take your pick. But I can tell you now, categorically, that whoever killed her only got into the house because she trusted them.’

Kate looked at Simone. ‘So what you’re saying is that she knew the man who killed her?’

Simone nodded. ‘Yeah. Maybe not as a customer at that house specifically, but they were someone she had seen before.’

Kate was disappointed, but she persevered. ‘So you haven’t seen anything that you would class as untoward with any of the other girls in the house? None of them getting a hard time from somebody, or being given preferential treatment? Let’s face it, lunatics come in all shapes and sizes. He may even be someone the girls like, someone they Little discrepancies arell Kate Burrowslt d would never guess could be so violent.’

Simone again thought long and hard about what she was being asked, but finally she shook her head. ‘Nothing springs to mind, but I’ll ask the girls, and if they can think of anything I’ll let you know.’

Annie said evenly, ‘Is there anyone who helps maintain the houses? Can you think of anyone the girls might have in common?’ It was a long shot, but she thought it was worth a try.

Simone shrugged. ‘Valerie was like a lot of the girls, she came out of the care system. A few of my Brookway House girls were even away together. Myself, I came from a home in Wales. My mother was a nut-bag, my brothers were out of control, and my father was a bully who didn’t care who he punched as long as he could punch someone. We’ve all done the halfway houses and the social worker route. Is it any wonder we end up as outcasts? We’ve all felt like outcasts all our lives.’

Kate didn’t know what to say. This was such an honest depiction of so many young people’s lives. Was it any wonder that the papers were full of children murdering children? If they were brought up like animals, was it any wonder that they acted like them?

‘Thanks for coming in, Simone. We’d appreciate it if you asked the girls to try and think of anyone they think might stand out from the crowd.’

Simone shrugged. ‘With our clientele that might be asking a bit too much. They ain’t exactly the norm.’ She laughed quietly. ‘Let’s face it, if they were, they wouldn’t be coming to the likes of us, would they?’

Kate smiled. As Simone left the room she looked at Annie and they both shook their heads in bafflement. They were no further in their quest to find the man responsible for the murder of so many young girls. It was as if he was a fucking ghost. He left nothing behind, not even a fractured memory.

Margaret Dole was looking at all the informatwho didn’

Chapter Twenty

Annie listened to Margaret extolling Kate’s virtues and hid her cynical smile. She understood the girl’s excitement at seeing Kate at work, up close a black and white. enwhoek eventuallynd personal. She knew that, like Margaret, she herself had only really understood the pull of detective work after seeing Kate’s dedication. The men in the force made every step forward into a major event, they celebrated every little thing with a piss-up. Kate just got on with it, and it was her determination to get to the truth that made people sit up and take notice. Even in this enlightened day and age, the men still reacted like their counterparts from the sixties. It was like watching a rerun of
The Sweeney
, they just wore nicer clothes, and knew how to turn on a laptop. But they basically had the same attitude.

Kate got her kudos from Kelly and his reputation. Like all Filth, the men here appreciated him as a genuine Face. They respected him for that, and they respected Kate because she had the sense to see what they saw. Margaret was still green enough to think that Kate had earned her reputation by herself - well, she wasn’t about to disabuse her of that notion.

Instead she said, in as friendly a voice as she could muster, ‘Kate knows what she’s doing. I heard her arrive home in the early hours. She won’t surface until lunchtime, and then she’ll expect us to be as wide awake as she is.’

Margaret heard a note of reprimand in Annie’s voice, it was as if she had somehow criticised her in some way. But she was still determined to make herself liked, make herself wanted, so she swallowed down her annoyance and said loudly, ‘Have you heard about Lionel? He’s taking early retirement.’

Annie nodded. She whispered, ‘About fucking time and all, he’s as bent as a fucking corkscrew. You do realise it was Kate who put the hard word on him, don’t you?’

Margaret was stunned, not at the words and what they conveyed, but more by Annie’s saying them to her in the first place. Annie was enjoying what she saw as the girl’s first real sojourn into police force politics.

‘He was a frequent flier by all accounts; he was Candy Cane’s best customer.’

Annie saw Margaret’s eyes open to their utmost, saw the shock and the disbelief on her lovely face. She assumed it was because Margaret had not heard the gossip. Annie couldn’t resist the urge to taunt her and said nastily, ‘Fucking hell, Margaret. Everyone knows about Lionel and his little peccadilloes, it’s the joke of the station. He used to be first in line for the new WPCs at one point. He’s never had a real fucking case, got a real collar, never arrested anyone of importance. He’s a career Filth, he’s climbed the ladder through arse-licking, combined with his association with the people he was
supposed
to be arresting. And yet he’s only going now because Kate put the hard word on him.’

Even though she had known all about Lionel and indeed had secretly given Kate the information, Margaret was surprised at Annie’s candour, and it showed. But she felt honoured that Annie felt she was important enough to say all this to, even though she knew about it all anyway. Police stations were like any other large establishment, they thrived on gossip and innuendo.

‘Did Kate seem interested in your research?’

Margaret nodded. She was back on her own turf now. When it came to computers and such like she knew there was no one to beat her. No one here anyway. She had a real knack for searching in cyberspace. She had been computer literate from a girl, and she enjoyed the challenge. She was a natural-born hacker and she loved the feeling she got when she found out what she wante appreciatedc was tryyed to know. She had understood a long time ago that policing was now more about paperwork, than actually going out and finding the people necessary. She had unobtrusively taken over Kate and Annie’s. Paperwork irritated them, but she liked to put it in order and enjoyed collating it all. Margaret was determined to become indispensable to them, and by doing that she knew she could truly earn her place in their team.

She decided to come clean. ‘I couldn’t resist it. I hacked into Lionel’s bank accounts, he earns fuck all in comparison to his lifestyle. He is definitely getting a second income from somewhere.’

Annie grinned. This was more like it. The girl was learning, slowly but surely.

‘Not exactly front page news, everyone guessed that years ago.’

Margaret didn’t answer her.

‘But by the same token, it’s gratifying to have it all proved true. I hope whoever takes over from him is someone we can at least respect, if not like.’

Margaret had hoped that would be the case too, but she knew it wasn’t to be. She had also hacked into the police database, she had been hacking into it for months. She knew that, sadly, the man who was to take over was as bad as Lionel Dart, if not worse. But she decided to keep that gem of wisdom to herself.

‘Did you make any copies of the files you gave Kate?’

Margaret shook her head ‘Most of the information was
hacked
. I hardly want that circulating around the station, do I? Kate can photocopy what she deems important. I’m sure she’ll bring us both up to date on her thoughts when she judges it necessary.’

‘Did you see anything of value?’

Margaret said truthfully, ‘No, it was all basically the same thing. They were all in care and, at sixteen, they were dumped into a halfway house. Then they ended up dead through their involvement with brassing. It’s as if they were enrolled in the school for the unwanted, the unneeded and the uncared for. I never realised how many kids are out there on their own, no one to claim them, no one for them to turn to. It puts Miriam and her old man into perspective, I mean, at least they cared. Which is more than I ever did. But I tell you something now, I’ll take more interest in the future.’

Margaret looked sad and Annie knew exactly how she was feeling. She also knew that, once this case was over, she would forget all her good intentions, and do what they all did. Forget all about the girls and why she cared about them in the first place. It was the only way to survive in their job. You had to concentrate on the task in hand, and emotion couldn’t come into it. Otherwise you couldn’t make any rational decisions. They made you vulnerable, and that was something you daren’t feel in their game. You had to put your emotions away, and start afresh with each new case.

But Margaret would learn all that in her own time. Until then, she would leave her in blissful ignorance. Margaret had not yet encountered the young men and women who were so damaged they were capable of the most heinous crimes. She hadn’t yet been threatened or attacked by someone who had no kind of real feelings. Who saw everyone around them as a mark, as somebody to either rob, blackmail or harm. She had only got herself put on this case because she was a computer whiz-kid.